“You really care about her, don’t you?”
Darius wouldn’t bother to deny it. “Yeah. She’s special.”
Marcs smiled. “You’re smarter than you look.”
Darius was about to offer some witty rejoinder when his phone buzzed. “It’s Kelso. Silva here.”
“They arrested him. He’s in custody. His name is Hans Jakob Reiter, and he’s an Austrian national.”
“Hans Jakob Reiter.” Darius passed the news to Marcs. “They arrested him.”
“Yes!”
Kelso wasn’t done. “He’s in custody now in Bratislava. Interpol had a file on him with a short but serious list of priors—auto theft, assault, public brawling.”
“A model citizen. How long will they hold him?”
“As it turns out, he had some Colorado agriculture on his person when they arrested him, so he’s going nowhere. You’ve got the time you need.”
That was a relief. “I take it marijuana is still illegal there.”
“Very. He’s looking at three years to a dime here in Slovakia.”
Darius didn’t like that. “I want him here, in the US, enjoying the hospitality of the Colorado State Penitentiary.”
“That’s up to the diplomats. We have an extradition treaty with Austria, but it’s a complicated process. For now, they’ve offered to send over his records and his fingerprints. They’ve also invited us to be part of the interrogation virtually. One of the spooks assigned to protect the embassy staff in Bratislava will question him, but you can brief him ahead of time and message him with follow-up questions.”
Kelso gave him the agent’s contact information.
“Perfect. Thanks, man.”
“Hey, it’s nice to work with you again. It’s been a while. Let me know what else I can do to help. I’ll stay in contact with State and our agent from the embassy and update you on any new developments.”
“Thanks.” Darius ended the call, shared what Kelso had told him.
“One of our CIA guys is questioning him?” Marcs seemed to be happy about this.
“Yes, with our help. We’ve got a lot to do to get ready.”
Sasha sat on her recliner,Megs, Mitch, and Nicole sitting on her sofa and floor, watching a documentary about Yellowstone National Park, food from Knockers and the big bouquet Rain and Joe had gotten her arranged on the coffee table.
But Sasha could barely focus on the documentary, an image fixed in her mind of the man who’d tried to kill her talking with Maritza.
Had Maritza known? Sasha hoped with her whole heart that she hadn’t. Then again, how could she not?
Darius had sent her a text to let her know the police in Slovakia had arrested him and that he would participate in questioning him.
Hans Jakob Reiter.
That was his name. But who was he? And what was his relationship to Maritza?
Maritza still hadn’t replied to any of Sasha’s text messages congratulating her for winning the world championship. Sasha hadn’t watched the lead climbing part of the competition or the award ceremony, but Megs had followed it on social media and let Sasha know the outcome.
“I hope she’s happy,” Megs had said. “I doubt she’ll have that trophy for long.”
Nicole had made a point of reminding Sasha that she was safe. “One of the men who attacked you is in the morgue, and the other one is in jail.”
Yesterday, she would have found comfort in that news. But today…
